Via Campesina Press Release
8 November : Worldwide protest against Syngenta
(Jakarta, 9 November 2007) Hundreds of groups
and individuals participated in street actions or sent petition letters
yesterday 8 November 2007 to protest against the murder of Valmir
Mota d’Oliveira Via Campesina-Brazil leader during an occupation of a Syngenta genetically modified (GMO) field trial in Parana,
Brazil. They denounced human rights abuses by the Swiss based transnational
company and more broadly protested against genetically modified seeds and
corporate control over agriculture.
Farmers
and their allies in Korea, Indonesia, East Timor, United States, Congo and
Spain staged actions in front of the Swiss embassies or the Syngenta
offices.
Korean
Progressive groups including Korea Peasant League(KPL),
KWPA (Korea Women Peasant Association) and Korea Alliance of Progressive
Movements gathered in front of the Syngenta building
to denounce company’s repression and to support the Brazilian landless movement
(MST) actions promoting peasant’s seeds and sustainable agriculture. There were
also testimonies by Korean farmers suffering from Syngenta
genetically modified melon seeds.
In
New York, activists from World Hunger Year, the Farmer Solidarity Project, and
Agricultural Missions Inc, and students from Rutgers university
met with Daniel Haener, Deputy Consul General at
Consulate General of Switzerland to hand him over their demands.
In
Congo, in Indonesia and in East Timor (on October 30th) the Via Campesina farmers’ organisations
FSPI, Hasatil and COPACO-PRP also staged actions
asking for the culprits to be punished and for Syngenta
to leave Brazil.
In
Switzerland itself, the farmer’s organisation
UNITERRE, also member of La Via Campesina,
asked the President of the Swiss federation Micheline
Clamy-Rey to take a stand on the Syngenta-
Brazil case.
Meanwhile,
hundreds of e-mails from people from around the world, mainly from Spain,
France and Portugal were sent to the Swiss authorities or to Syngenta head office expressing shock and asking for
justice. << A transnational company that is monopolising
seeds, water and land has to be taken accountable for its environmental and
social crimes>>, says one of the protest letter.
Henry
Saragih, Indonesian based General Coordinator of La Via Campesina said <>.
More
information and pictures on www.viacampesina.org
Isabelle
Delforge
Communication
assistant
La
Via Campesina -
International Secretariat:
Jln. Mampang Prapatan XIV No. 5
Jakarta Selatan, Jakarta 12790 Indonesia
Phone:
+62-21-7991890, Fax : +62-21-7993426, mobile phone:
+62 81513224565
E-mail:
idelforge@viacampesina.org
Website:
http://www.viacampesina.org